Bleacher Report - Articles by Talvir Singh

2009 Eurpoean GP: Patient Barrichello Wins at Last

Talvir Singh — Tue, 25 Aug 2009 12:24:35 -0400

Cast your minds back to 2004, possibly one of the most dominant seasons by Ferrari in history, when Michael Schumacher gained his seventh world championship.

It was also the debut year for the Chinese Grand Prix at Shanghai, the last time Rubens Barrichello won a race. At last, his five year wait has ended after a brilliant victory at the European Grand Prix in Valencia this year.

After a painful first half of the season, which saw the 37 year old almost play a supporting role to teammate Jenson Button, but this time, the tables were turned, as the Brazilian comprehensively beat his fellow Brawn GP driver to the line.

Barrichello started third behind both Mclarens, but completely outpaced Heikki Kovalainen, and in the end got past Lewis Hamilton, to take a commanding win at Valencia, dedicating to fellow countryman Felipe Massa, who is not racing after his injury in Hungary.

Analysis of the revised fuel strategies saw Barrichello as the quickest man, ahead of pole sitter Lewis Hamilton, despite being heavier than the Briton. However, both drivers appeared to match each other's pace throughout the duration of the race, which is why most viewers would have agreed that Hamilton lost out on back to back wins due to an error in his second pit stop.

The Mclaren team made an almost school-boyish mistake by not preparing his tires when he came in for his stop, which cost him a few seconds, which in Formula One is an eternity.

However, further analysis at the end of the race saw that Barrichello was indeed quicker that Hamilton anyway, and would've caught up and even taken the lead from the 24 year old, despite the pit stop.

With both Red Bulls failing to secure any points, this places Barrichello right back into the championship hunt, and putting him second, 18 points behind his teammate at the top.

Overall, Brawn GP delivered a great strategy and got the rewards. Unfortunately the same cannot be said for Mclaren, but with their drivers finishing second and fourth, they are still proving that they have made huge steps forward and are now one of the front running teams.

This weekend at Valencia saw not only a driver who is in the twilight of his career win a race, but also saw a new upcoming driver, by the name of Romain Grosjean, making his debut.

Unfortunately, it didn't quite go to plan as he finished 15th, but there is definitely some talent in there, and plenty of time to exploit it.

The talk of the paddock though was the return of former Minardi driver, and long time Ferrari test driver, Luca Badoer, to take the injured Felipe Massa'a place. He had a pretty miserable race, qualifying last and finishing 17th, but he did admit that this was expected due the lack of testing.

However, there were definitely some better candidates, one being second reserve driver Mark Gene, winner of this years 24 hours du Mans. But Ferrari team boss, Stefano Domenicalli insisted that as Badoer has been part of the team for many number of years now, he deserved a chance to race.

As his last race was in 1999 for Minardi, he's definitely been out of touch, and there is no place for sentimentality in this sport, something the Ferrari boss had to learn the hard way.

Although, there was something for the Italian to be happy about with Kimi Raikkonen finishing in third behind Hamilton. A good performance from the Finn, who started sixth, and is certainly making it very difficult for Ferrari to get rid of him.

With the prospect of Alonso going to Ferrari, it was certain that the team were going to pair the Spaniard with Massa, but with the Brazilian's injury complicating things, the team now potentially have three top drivers, but with only two seats to fill.

Overall though, the Eurpoean Grand Prix was a bit more entertaining than last year's. There wasn't much overtaking, a common theme from 2008, but the tension of the battle at the front was very entertaining.

Now it's onto Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium, for round 12 on the Formula One calendar. Conditions at this race should suit the Red Bulls, but Brawn GP are determined to prove that their tire temperature issue has been resolved, and now doubt Button will be hoping to find some of that lost form from the start of the season.

2009 Hungary GP: World Champion Lewis Hamilton Restored to Former Glory

Talvir Singh — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 14:25:57 -0400

McLaren are a team known for their competitive spirit, always battling at the top of the pile with big guns Ferrari. Alas, this season that spirit has been restored, thanks to a well-deserved victory for Lewis Hamilton.

Hungary hosted a brilliant race at the weekend, with a race filled with thrills, spills and drama, both on and off the track. The technical, and physical nature of the track is demanding on both driver and car, with few overtaking spots, and is even described by commentating legend Murray Walker as 'Monaco, but without the buildings'.

Therefore its no surprise for the spectators at home and the track, that most of the time, its a procession. As soon as a driver qualifies for his place on the grid, he has one or two chances in the first three laps or so to make some places, then its pretty predictable from then.

However, the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix was a huge exception to those rules, as the Budapest track gave spectacle to a phenomenal race, with many close battles all the through the field.

After the timings blunder in qualifying, race winner Hamilton qualified fourth behind Mark Webber, Sebastian Vettel, and pole-sitter Fernando Alonso, his first since Italy 2007. Team-mate Heikki Kovalainen qualified sixth.

From there, the 24 year old Briton powered up to third at the first corner, and passed Webber at the same place after spending five laps on his tail.

Due to a bad pit stop by the Renault team, that saw an unsecure front right wheel come clean off at turn 11, Alonso had to retire from the race, with prospects of sniffing out a first podium for the team this year.

This allowed Hamilton to power home to a commanding victory, beating Kimi Raikkonen by 10 seconds. If anyone expected McLaren to win a race this year, they would've bet them to win by a fraction of a margin, but Hamilton proved that this car is a race winner, by dominating the race throughout.

Looking at the overall picture, by which I mean the championship, Jenson Button was just able to hold on for a seventh place finish, with his BGP001 struggling for grip on the tight and twisty Hungaroaring.

With Webber gaining third place, the ever worrying Button was able to keep his championship advantage over the Aussie to 18.5 points. Complacent times for both Brawn GP and Red Bull, as McLaren and Ferrari stage their stunning return to form.

With these two Formula One giants returning to their former glory, the title race between Brawn GP and Red Bull is as interesting as ever, as McLaren and Ferrari could step in the way to hurt both teams chances of winning the title.

Above all the action on the track, the weekend was a ground of tribute paying by all the fans and teams to the hospitalised Felipe Massa, who suffered a fractured skull when a spring from Rubens Barrichello's Brawn hit him at over 160mph. Brawn GP are to be investigated by the FIA.

All speculation after the race has been on who will take the Brazilian's place for the rest of the year, and Ferrari have come to the unanimous that the seven time world champion Michael Schumacher will come out of retirement to take his place.

The German has emphasised that this is only a temporary replacement until Massa is race fit again. However, this return from Schumacher races many interesting questions. Will he be fit enough to race? Is he too old to race?

Personally, I think the most interesting question is this. Schumacher vs Hamilton, who will win? The battle every Formula One fan has been wanting to see, and now it is a reality.

Schumacher will make his appearance at the European Grand Prix in Valencia, and was picked ahead of reserve drivers Mark Gene and Luca Badoer. Others drivers, such as Fernando Alonso, and Sebastian Bourdais were considered, but the team went for the German's experience of racing for Ferrari.

2009 German GP: Mark Webber Powers To First Victory at Nurburgring

Talvir Singh — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 11:13:41 -0400

Nurburgring, the new host of the German Grand Prix, and home to five of the 20 drivers, pulled out an unbelievable race in which Mark Webber seized his first win in Formula One.

After eight years of hardship, four different teams, and 130 races, the Aussie rejoiced at the top of the podium to take top honours, with Sebastian Vettel alongside in second. This time the German could only watch as his teammate celebrated, but was also happy for him, showing that he knows how it feels when you get your first Grand Prix win.

Webber drove superbly, and although he couldn't quite knock the Australian cricket team off the front page of the newspapers, he was definitely worthy to be there.

As was the case in Silverstone, the weather conditions played right in Red Bull's hands, with the RB5 once again showing its dominance over the BGP001 in cooler conditions.

The Brawn of Rubens Barrichello put up a good fight at the beginning of the race, with him leading into the first corner, up to the first pit stop. However, this did not last for the duration of the race, as he finished sixth behind teammate Jenson Button.

The Brazilian was quick to point the finger at his team after the race, as plenty of emotions filled the air both on and off the track. As Webber screamed "YES!" down his radio a many number of times, Barrichello expressed how annoyed he was with his team for losing him the race.

One problem for him was with the fuel rig, but also Ross Brawn placed both his drivers on three stops, whereas the Red Bull's were on two stops. A crucial mistake from the mastermind who led Michael Schumacher to seven world championships?

One can only think so.

However, Webber's long awaited victory overshadowed the rows off the track, and even a drive through penalty wasn't enough to stop him. It was an emotional day for the Aussie, and Red Bull.

Brawn GP are set to bring in a new upgrade to Hungary that will hopefully keep their early season momentum going, but although this championship seems to have turned into a two horse race, other teams are still making leaps and bounds to improve.

One team that definitely has performed well is Force India, who have shown great promise in the past few races. Adrian Sutil was yet again close on scoring the teams first points, even running second, but once again had a run in with Kimi Raikkonen exiting the pits.

But, it's needless to say that Ferrari themselves have made great progress this year, with another podium from Felipe Massa who had a brilliant race, showing his defensive skills throughout, and even keeping his Brazilian counterpart at bay for 10 laps.

Their rivals McLaren also made an incredible impact throughout the weekend, with Heikki Kovalainen finishing in the points, but it was not the same for Lewis Hamilton.

The Briton had a magnificent start, storming past Button and Vettel, with teammate Kovalainen going around the other side. He was even in the lead when Webber accidentally clipped his rear right wheel, giving him a puncture, and dropping him to the back of the field.

I believe that the incident was purely accidental, as Webber was so busy battling with Barrichello, that he must have been startled by Hamilton, therefore forcing the mistake. However, with the new front wing package and double-decker diffuser, the reigning world champion will not lay down at Hungary.

A1GP 08/09: Ireland Seize Championship with Double Win at Brands Hatch

Talvir Singh — Tue, 26 May 2009 11:03:36 -0400

I would first like to apologise for the major delay of this article, as the races did happen at the beginning of May. Luckily, I've finally found some time to write it now, and I hope you enjoy it. Please feel free to leave comments.

The end of the fourth season of A1GP World Cup of Motorsport, and what an ending it provided. Team Ireland, driven by the master Adam Carroll, led home a double win at the final round at Brands Hatch, Great Britain, to secure their first championship.

The Kent circuit was bathed in sunshine for the final round, with all the front-runners in the championship looking very nervous. Team Ireland and Adam Carroll however, were the least worried of the three contenders, as he gave the team a double pole.

Rivals, Teams Switzerland, and Portugal, were not so lucky however, starting low down the grid for both races.

For the first race of the day, all the attention was on Carroll, who seized control, and brought home their first win of the day. Although Salvador Duran of Team Mexico briefly took the lead from the word go, Carroll was still the star, even gaining an extra point with the fastest lap of the race.

India came second after a stunning performance, a great morale boost after their victory here in the Feature race a year ago, with Mexico finishing third.

USA, Portugal, Netherlands, Australia, and Switzerland rounded out the points finishers, disappointing for the other two championship fighters.

Team Monaco's engine caught fire at the end of the pit lane, leaving Clivio Piccione to watch the remaining 10 laps of the race.

Daniel Morad had an incident at Paddock Hill bend, spinning right in front of New Zealand's Earl Bamber, forcing both cars onto the gravel. Luckily both cars survived with no damage, thanks to some expert driving by the young New Zealander.

The weekend started off brilliantly for Team Ireland, and with the Sprint race win, Carroll's fortunes only looked higher as they entered the Feature race.

He started the race brilliantly, not conceding first place to Monaco alongside him, and dominated from then. No-one touched him as he drove to a double victory at Brands Hatch.

All the troubles during the season with his spin at Kyalami, 25secs penalty at the Algarve, and other chances when Neel Jani just pipped Feature race wins, all washed away as soon as he crossed the line.

Switzerland and Portugal were left standing on the track after such a stunning performance, and could only show their appreciation of the better driver on the day. Switzerland's efforts were heroic, but not enough, as Jani finished third behind Jeroen Bleekemolen of Team Netherlands, and with a cracked exhaust.

Felipe Albuquerque finished fifth for Portugal behind the ever improving Team Monaco, whose efforts from second on the grid were commendable.

Team Mexico finished in sixth with Team GBR's Dan Clarke putting in a performance to be proud of in front of his home crowd with seventh.

Australia, who received the fastest lap in this race, Italy, and France round out the rest of the points finishers.

After a brilliant performance in the Sprint race, India were not so lucky in the Feature, with China being nudged by USA and colliding into them at Paddock Hill on the first lap of the race. A contrasting difference from last years Feature race.

New Zealand retired again, with a spin at Westfield, putting the Black Beauty out of the race.

Malaysia also ran wide and retired but at Druids, an early finish to this season for them too, and Germany had an exhaust problem, forcing them to retire as well.

With the fourth A1GP World Cup of Motorsport over, a new champion has been crowned in the shape of Team Ireland, after a stunning double win at the Kent track, the only double win of the season.

Team Switzerland just missed out on being the first team to successfully defend a title, but all credit to them, and to Neel Jani, who pushed Adam Carroll to his limits in every race of the season.

2009 Monaco GP: Hat-Trick Button Secures Stunning Victory

Talvir Singh — Mon, 25 May 2009 10:51:41 -0400

Let's flashback to the past real fast.

Hungary, 2006: The moment Jenson Button secured his first victory in Formula One.

Three years later and Button is again winning races, but a lot more of them.

Monaco, 2009: Button exits the race with three straight victories, tallying five wins in six races for Brawn so far this season. His domination early in the season is reminiscent of Michael Schumacher and several other famous Formula One drivers.

Unfortunately, the race around the glamorous streets of Monte Carlo gave spectacle to a rather mediocre race, with very little overtaking. Incidents were scarce, but did provide some interesting twists to the championship.

However, it was all about Button and Brawn GP, as Ross Brawn's team gained their third one-two result of the season.

Button drove a dominating race, untouchable from the very beginning to the end. His smooth style of driving gave him a huge advantage over teammate Rubens Barrichello in the early stages of the race.

The tires that were used at Monaco were the harder compound, as they were more durable and lasted longer. Both Brawn machines started on the super-soft compound, therefore Barrichello's more aggressive approach to racing wore his tires down quicker than Button's.

As was the case, Barrichello pitted earlier than expected, whereas Button stayed out much longer, gaining some major distance over his teammate while low on fuel.

Before his tires wore down too much, Barrichello looked to be Button's only threat, but from then on Button had no equal on the track and continued to cruise to his victory after 78 laps of the tough and twisty streets of Monaco. Barrichello finished second.

Throughout the grid, there were mixed fortunes for all the drivers and teams, with Ferrari making the biggest impact of them all. Kimi Raikkonen finished in third, marking the first podium of 2009 for Ferrari, with Felipe Massa just behind. Raikkonen also had the fastest lap of the race with a one minute, 15.154 seconds lap.

Demonstrating a vast improvement, Ferrari looked set to continue to work towards their first victory of the season.

The same can be said for Nico Rosberg, who drove a very good race, even overtaking Massa in the early stages and finishing in the points. His teammate, however, did not finish the race, crashing on the last lap of the race at Mirabeau.

It was a similar story for Red Bull, as Mark Webber finished in a convincing fifth place, with Sebastian Vettel crashing into the barrier at Sainte Devote early in the race.

The trend continued with Renault and Toro Rosso, with Fernando Alonso and Sebastian Bourdais finishing in the points, and both of their teammates retiring.

Sebastian Buemi braked too late going into Sainte Devote, and ended up pushing Nelson Piquet's car into the barrier with him. It was a big blow for the struggling Renault driver who looked set to finish somewhere in the points.

Force India had a great weekend, with their drivers finishing ninth and 14th. Vijay Maliya's team made good progress.

On the other side of the spectrum, McLaren had a promising start to the weekend, which turned out to be abysmal in the end. Lewis Hamilton's incident at Mirabeau in qualifying started off his misfortune as his crash had him starting at the very back of the grid. He could only muster a 12th-place finish this year at Monaco. His 2009 race had a very different scenario than the one last year.

Heikki Kovalainen looked to get some points, but spun at the swimming pool chicane, putting himself into the barrier and out of the race. It was a weekend to be forgotten by the Woking based team.

The top eight finishers (in order) were: Button, Barrichello, Raikkonen, Massa, Webber, Rosberg, Alonso and Bourdais.

With Monaco under his belt now, Jenson Button will surely be looking forward to his home Grand Prix at Silverstone in two races time, and perhaps this year he will finally secure a victory there.

However, it's on to Istanbul first for the Turkish Grand Prix in two weeks.

2009 Bahrain GP: 3/4 Wins For Jenson Button Under Searing Bahrain Heat

Talvir Singh — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 11:10:36 -0400

Jenson Button took top honours at the Bahrain Grand Prix, totalling his wins this season at three, with four overall in his Formula One career.

Button, 29, guided his BGP001 to a commanding victory over rivals Toyota and Red Bull. The Briton started fourth behind both the Toyotas and Sebastian Vettel, winner of the Chinese Grand Prix a week ago.

He got off to a fairly decent enough start, making the jump on the Vettel, but the KERS powered Mclaren driven by fellow Brit Lewis Hamilton, shot past him with ease, leaving Button to remain in fourth.

However, on the next lap, he got a good bit of slipstream down the main straight, and darted down the inside of the world champion to take third from him at turn one.

From then on it was a case of holding back and waiting for the Toyotas to pit. Timo Glock, who was leading the race after getting a better start than team-mate Jarno Trulli, pitted first after about nine laps.

Trulli soon pitted afterwards, and this allowed Button some clear air to get in some fast laps. So when he pitted, he was safely out in the lead in front of both Toyotas.

At that point, Button began to pull away from everyone else, thanks to Trulli holding up Vettel after the first pit stops, and Vettel doing the same to Trulli after the second round of stops.

After 56 laps, Button safely crossed the line over seven seconds ahead of second place man Vettel, with Trulli finishing third, marking his third victory our of the four races so far in the 2009 season.

Button's win was not the only thing that was impressive this race. There were other teams and drivers who showed much improvement since the beginning of the year, and others who were still falling into the dark abyss known as the back of the grid.

Toyota's qualifying performance showed some dominance over the other teams, but unfortunately didn't transfer that to race pace, with Trulli third, and Glock a disappointing seventh.

Mclaren again showed much improvement, with reigning world champion finishing fourth, his best finish of the season so far. After making a thunderous start to the race, which saw him nearly take second from Trulli, he settled for just outside of the podium.

His team-mate Heikki Kovalainen, put in another disappointing performance, finishing 12th after starting 11th.

Mark Webber's already unlucky weekend saw him finish 11th, after starting 18th. He made a fabulous getaway on lap one, making his way up the pack with superb skill. However, after last weeks performance at China, this was a thoroughly disappointing performance for the Australian.

Ferrari made some improvements, with Kimi Raikkonen finishing sixth, giving Ferrari their first points of the season. Felipe Massa however finished 14th, after starting eighth, and also got lapped, making his race go from bad to worst.

Nelson Piquet Jr was given a solid kick up the backside this weekend, with team boss Flavio Briatore telling him he's out of that seat if he does not perform this time. Piquet finished with a convincing 10th place, even holding off Rubens Barrichello in the middle stages of the race.

BMW suffered their worst weekend for a long time, with both their drivers finishing in the bottom two places. On a plus side, Nick Heidfeld still has the record for the most consecutive race finishes, with an ongoing tally of 32.

The final standings were: Button, Vettel, Trulli, Hamilton, Barrichello, Raikkonen, Glock, and Alonso.

Button now has 31 points going into the next race, 12 ahead of team-mate Barrichello, with Brawn GP's total points tally up to 50.

The Grand Prix of Bahrain provided a good and safe race, with only one retirement from Kazuki Nakajima, with an oil pressure problem. May the Spanish Grand Prix in two weeks provide the same, and hopefully something extra.

China's Treacherous Conditions Hands Red Bull Its First 1-2

Talvir Singh — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:21:07 -0400

The Chinese Grand Prix at the Shanghai circuit provided an exciting rain filled race that saw Red Bull secure their first victory, thanks to Sebastian Vettel, who scored his second career victory in Formula One.

The Red Bull Racing team brought their maiden victory in style by securing first and second place, at the technical Shanghai circuit under demanding conditions.

Vettel, 21, drove a sensible yet commanding race, completely untouchable from everyone else on the grid. His qualifying performance showed an indication as to how quick the Red Bull's were, topping the time sheets in the second and third qualifying sessions.

The Brawn's were completely outpaced this weekend, but it can be argued that this was mainly due to the weather conditions, and that if it stayed dry, then the Brawn's could have brought home another dominating victory.

They were fuelled 10 laps heavier than the Red Bull's, and Fernando Alonso, who started second, therefore they could have run a longer first stint than the Red Bull's, giving them a good chance of securing a one-two.

As it was, the heavens opened before the race and all the teams were panicking as they had to re-think their strategies, especially the front three. A Safety Car start spiced it up even more for the teams, and some serious planning was to be put into the strategies.

Evidently, Alonso pitted earlier than Vettel and Webber, but the Renault team timed it to perfection by bringing him in just before the Safety Car was brought in. Adrian Sutil and Nico Rosberg also pitted within the first five laps, placing them at the very back of the pack.

After the Safety Car was back in the pits, the race was under way, and this is when Vettel and Webber began to show the potential of the new RB5 by taking the race by the reins.

Webber did have some trouble later on the race with Jenson Button, who showed he was still quicker than team-mate Rubens Barrichello, who was a long way back in fourth. However, Webber dispatched him after there second pit stops, with Button coming out behind, and unable to catch the Australian.

Vettel continued his dominance of the race throughout, driving with a cool head, calmly guiding his RB5 to take the chequered flag, with Webber taking second, and Button rounding out the podium.

Red Bull marked their first victory with a commanding one-two from their drivers, demonstrating to Brawn GP, who dominated the first two races, that they are a force to be reckoned with.

Among the joy and surprise of Red Bull obtaining their first win, there was plenty of other action that happened throughout the race on all corners of the track.

Both Ferrari drivers failed to score any points again, with Kimi Raikkonen going backwards on the track more than anything, finishing 10th. Team-mate Felipe Massa, sitting comfortably in third, bought his car to a halt at the beginning of the one and a half mile back straight.

It is thought that water got into the electronics, causing his car to die on him behind the Safety Car.

Robert Kubica ran up the back of Jarno Trulli at the last corner, losing his front wing, and the Toyota driver losing his rear wing. This put the Italian out of the race.

His team-mate Timo Glock however brought himself up the field to seventh after starting in the pits.

The rookie driver Sebastian Buemi surprised everyone after qualifying tenth on Saturday, and then left everyone's mouths hanging open after scoring his first Formula One world championship point. The young Toro Rosso driver began with plenty of pace, and ended driving a calm race to finish in the top eight.

Adrian Sutil came very close to scoring Force India's first points after clawing his way up to fifth place, in front of both the McLarens. However, a repeat of Monaco loomed over and he spun at turn five and crashed into the tyre barrier.

The story of the weekend however was the pace of Mclaren all weekend. After Lewis Hamilton topped the time sheets in Friday practice, he put in a brilliant performance at the Shanghai circuit.

His natural racing ability pulled his MP4-24 ninth to finish sixth, unfortunately spinning three times in the process, allowing his team-mate Heikki Kovalainen to pass him. Due to this, the Briton had to pass former world championship rival Raikkonen three times during the race.

Kovalainen began to open up in the final stages of the race, and even caught up to Barrichello, but couldn't quite catch him quick enough.

Overall, Mclaren showed that they are rebuilding, but this could all be for nothing after their hearing on the 29th April.

The results of the top eight were: Vettel, Webber, Button, Barrichello, Kovalainen, Hamilton, Glock, and Buemi.

With the Shanghai circuit hosting a breath taking race of epic proportions, what can Bahrain hold in a weeks time.

Thrills, Spills, and Controversy in The Algarve

Talvir Singh — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 10:44:56 -0400

Algarve, Portugal recently played host to what could only be described as two breathtaking races. Team Switzerland picked up a third consecutive feature race victory, giving Neel Jani 10 career victories, the highest amount that any A1GP driver has obtained. Team Netherlands won the Sprint race.

The new event for this years A1GP at the Autodromo International de Algarve, has been described as being a "rollercoaster", with its many hills, and sweeping corners.

Formula One teams have tested here before during winter testing, but no actual racing car event has taken place here which provided the drivers and the teams a new challenge to seize control over.

Team Italy scored a pole position in the Sprint race qualifying thanks to debutant and ex-Formula One driver, Vitantonio Liuzzi, with Robert Doornbos for Team Netherlands next door, and Team Ireland rounding out the top three.

Team Switzerland did not put in a time and started at the very back of the grid.

This set up a race full of thrills and spills, with every team pushing as hard as they could to score any points they could.

As it was Team Italy kept up their advantage for about two seconds as Doornbos got off to a powerful start and overtook Liuzzi before reaching the first corner. Team Ireland also tried to put the pressure on in the first corner.

Liuzzi kept second place, and from then on frustrated championship contenders Team Ireland and Portugal by keeping them at bay.

Teams New Zealand and Germany were caught up in some first lap incidents along with Team Lebanon. New Zealand's Earl Bamber made a move on Team Lebanon at turn three, but unfortunately hit the front of Daniel Morad's car when trying to close the door on him, spinning him out of the race.

Then on turn five Andre Lotterer for Team Germany made a move around the outside of Morad trying to capitalise on Morad's sudden lack of pace due to some front suspension damage caused in his mix up with New Zealand.

However, the Lebanese car could not make a left turn, and this led to the two drivers clashing with Team Germany losing their rear left wheel.

Team Lebanon carried on for one more lap but the suspension damage was too great, therefore forcing Morad to retire. Following his excellent fourth place in the feature race in Kyalami, he and the team were hoping to score big, but ended with negative results.

These incidents caused the safety car to be deployed, bunching up all the teams.

So after the first couple of laps, and all the excitement and drama of retirements, the order was Netherlands, Italy, Ireland, Portugal, Monaco, India, Malaysia, and Brazil. Team Switzerland were able to claw themselves up to 13th, while Neel Jani looked as strong and determined as ever.

With the restart Doornbos quickly left Liuzzi in his dust, and set about setting the fastest lap of the race, demonstrating his dominance. Team USA on the other hand had a bad restart, with Teams Australia and Switzerland making a move in the early section of the lap.

The first round of pit stops provided excitement and gave some of the front running teams some much needed advantages.

Team Netherlands were the first of the front runners to come in, and the Dutch crew made a perfect stop. Teams Italy, Ireland and Portugal were next to come in, and Ireland and Portugal made the jump on Italy, dispatching Liuzzi once and for all.

Small drama happened in the pits with Brazil's Felipe Guimares clipping a wheel that one of China's pit mechanics was holding, sending it rolling to the pit wall. It was recovered quickly and business resumed.

Switzerland stayed out the longest, and eventually pitted with seven laps to go, rejoining in eighth.

However, bad judgement by the Swiss team meant they received a 30 second stop go penalty for coming in a lap late, placing them back in 15th, foiling Neel Jani's brilliant attempt to score some much needed points.

The race was red flagged with three laps to go as Brazil and South Africa had a coming together at turn three, due to a brake failure on Brazil's behalf.

This meant that the race was finished early and Team Netherlands won the race, with Team Ireland finishing second. Team Portugal put in a pleasing performance in front of their home crowd with a third place under Felipe Albuquerque's belt.

Italy, Monaco, India, Brazil, and Malaysia rounded out the rest of the points finishers, with Ireland obtaining the fastest lap, and an extra point.

With the Sprint race over, Ireland had placed themselves ahead of Switzerland and looked to take more advantage over that lead after looking so strong in the Sprint race.

Team Netherlands definitely looked clear favourites to win the feature race, and with a pole position under them, this was going to be all to easy for them. Until that is, on the formation lap, Robert Doornbos suffered an electrical fault that caused a fire in his car.

The favourites couldn't get round the formation lap, and an enraged Doornbos got out of his car and watched the first few laps of the race on the side of the track.

So with Netherlands out the way, Teams Ireland and Switzerland were now placed on the front row of the grid, a straight race between the top two title contenders, with Portugal only four places behind them. The heat was on before the race even began.

The lights went out and Adam Carroll got off to a fabulous start, with Neel Jani not too far behind. Team USA got off to a magnificent start, with Marco Andretti boosting himself from sixth to fourth before the first turn.

Team Portugal however recovered that position back from them, and the drivers started racing hard to move themselves as high as possible up the field, with Lebanon running wide on turn six with a puncture, and Australia getting caught up with something on the first corner placing them last.

Team Ireland were dominating at the front, with Carroll getting a 1.8 secs' lead over Switzerland and they were looking to cruise home to victory, which must have annoyed Doornbos, who was still sitting on the fence, helmet on, watching the race.

However, Ireland received a drive through penalty for jump starting on the grid and they came in soon after it was issued, placing him way down the field. Neel Jani at the front, and in clear air, gained the fastest lap of the race so far with a 1:32.774 secs'.

The first pit stops were soon upon the teams, and most teams came in early, all having smooth stops, Portugal being one of them.

Switzerland and Ireland came in a lap after the first load of teams and rejoined without any trouble.

New Zealand's Earl Bamber ran a very quiet race up until this point, but all of a sudden found himself leading the race. So when he came in to pit he rejoined in third behind Switzerland and South Africa, who were having their best race of the season so far.

Adrian Zaugg and Earl Bamber had a great tussle for about six laps or so, until Bamber caught himself out when hard on the brakes, and went straight into the back of the South African car, placing them both out of the race.

Both teams were going for their best finish of the season, so this was disappointing for drivers.

This issued a safety car, and after a hectic first half of the race, the order was, Switzerland, Portugal, Italy, USA, Mexico, (who Fisichella'd their way to fifth), Monaco, Malaysia, India, Germany, and Ireland.

With the restart, Felipe Albuquerque made a great move on Jani around the outside of the first corner and slotted himself into the lead. The home crowd went absolutely wild as they saw their man take the lead of the Feature race.

With the race back under way there were plenty of battles through the field, but one battle brought the safety car back out the same lap it went in.

Liuzzi tried to make a darting move on the inside of Andretti at turn nine, but both ended up touching, and Italy collected the innocent Monaco, forcing all three to retire.

As the safety car made another lap of the Algarve circuit only 12 cars remained in the race, making this one of the most eventful races of the season so far.

So with 20 laps to go, the safety car made its way back into the pits for the restart, and Portugal went on the acceleration too early and almost overtook the safety car before it went into the pits.

Due to this Albuquerque bunched up the whole field again and then went away, leading down the pit straight and through the first corner.

The second round of pit stops came all too soon for the teams, and all the teams came in within a couple of laps of each other, with Portugal and Ireland coming in a lap later than Switzerland.

After the stops the order was Switzerland, Portugal, Ireland, India, Malaysia, Australia, Mexico, Great Britain, China, and Indonesia.

After a brilliant stop that placed them right behind Portugal, Ireland were charging hard after hearing that they were to receive another drive through penalty for overtaking John Martin of Team Australia before crossing the line after the Safety Car.

From here on Adam Carroll really started to push to get the fastest lap before serving his penalty, and even get passed Portugal to the dismay of the crowd.

Carroll got the fastest lap with a 1:31.453 secs', and begins to really push hard, closing the gap to Switzerland to about half a second with about six laps to go. Also Ireland had been told they don't need to serve their penalty, so Carroll was free to race as hard as he could to get passed Jani.

There were a couple of late retirements with Australia and India both retiring with about three laps to go.

Adam Carroll pushed as hard as he could to get by the experienced Neel Jani, but the seasoned driver held his head together and kept himself ahead of the Irish driver to take the chequered flag for the 10th time in his career, with Ireland following ever so closely behind.

Portugal put in another brilliant performance in front of their home crowd to record another podium finish.

Now due to Ireland's penalty, they were given a 25 second penalty after the race, placing them fifth, and promoting Portugal to second.

So the revised finish standings were Switzerland, Portugal, Malaysia, Mexico, Ireland, France, Great Britain, China, Germany, Indonesia.

With such a thrilling race at the new Algarve circuit, the championship is tighter than ever, with only six points separating Switzerland, Ireland and Portugal. This looks like it will be heading right down to the wire in Mexico, but next stop, Brands Hatch.

Button Gains Second Win Of Season After Torrential Downpour In Malaysia

Talvir Singh — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 13:20:38 -0400

Torrential downpour, and thunderous storms gave Jenson Button his second win of the season, pushing his tally up to three, after the Malaysian Grand Prix was red flagged after 31 laps.

Button, 29, gave Brawn GP its second career win in its first season of Formula One, finishing ahead of BMW's Nick Heidfeld and Toyota's Timo Glock.

Button, who won the first race of the season in Australia with ease, had a tougher time this weekend with the unpredictable weather, and also with other drivers who were appearing to be giving him a serious run for his money.

These drivers included Nico Rosberg, Jarno Trulli, and Timo Glock, who all pushed the Briton to the very end.

The start of the race provided much drama, with Button getting off to a bad start, giving Trulli, who looked quick all through Saturday qualifying, the chance to get ahead and into the lead.

However, I don't think the Toyota driver was planning on a Williams to pull up along side him and take the lead, as Rosberg, from fourth, got off to a stunning start and pipped both the Toyota and Brawn before the first corner.

Fernando Alonso, in a Renault that is performing below par, made a staggering start, moving himself from ninth to fourth. This put himself in front of Rubens Barrichello who started one place above him, but also made a good start to put himself into fifth.

Barrichello soon dispatched Alonso by the fourth corner, but the Spaniard remained stubborn and held off Kimi Raikkonen's Ferrari for nine laps, clearly demonstrating a champion's craftsmanship behind the wheel. His car was also fuelled much heavier than Raikkonen's, again showing Alonso's skill as a Formula One driver.

Heikki Kovalainen and Robert Kubica were the first to suffer on the first two laps of the Grand Prix, with Kovalainen spinning after running wide around turn five. This placed him on the dirty side of the track and he lost grip, throwing his Mclaren into the gravel, and out of the race.

Kubica's bad luck from the end of Australia carried through to this race, as the Polish driver suffered from an engine problem on the second lap. No points for him this time around.

From then on the race entered into a usual process of drivers getting into their groove and putting in solid laps, with the Brawn GP drivers lapping faster than everyone else, with Button getting a 1:37.5 secs.

However, it was Rosberg who was the star of the show in the opening stages, developing a lead of 2.8 secs over Trulli, with Button respectively being another second behind him.

The Williams driver was looking untouchable, definitely showing the Brawn GP team that they aren't the only quick team in the field, but this all changed in the pit stops.

Vettel was the first to come in after 11 laps, as it was clear that he was fuelled lightly after starting in 13th. Rosberg was second to pit and it was from here that his perfect race would come to an end.

His stop was smooth, and he came out in fourth behind Barrichello, but after Trulli and Button pitted, he ended being a long way behind the Brawn GP car of Button.

Glock and Webber also pitted, and after Glock applied tons of pressure onto Webber, he was able to get out in front of the Aussie. This must have made the German happy as he started in third but ended up down in eighth at the beginning.

From here however, it was all about Button, as he was able to establish a dominating lead over the rest of the pack.

After about 20 laps of racing, it seemed certain that the Briton would cruise home with another win under his belt, until the weather gods decided to intervene.

Malaysia is known for its sudden change in weather, especially since the race is held in the middle of monsoon season, which means that when it rains, it pours, and it won't stop.

This is exactly what happened, and this led to all the teams having to re-think their strategies. Ferrari had already done this and put Raikkonen on full wets about 5 laps before, anticipating the rain to come earlier. This was a critical mistake by the team as the Finn began to lap more than 20 secs off the pace.

Every team brought in their drivers to put on the full wets, rather than the intermediates, except for Glock.

Toyota decided to give him the intermediate tyre instead, and this plan worked out perfectly, as he lapped quicker than everyone else, getting in the 1:30's, as opposed to the others who were lapping in the 1:40's.

Mark Webber was another driver who looked very quick for a short while, also having a good exciting battle with Lewis Hamilton for a few laps, who managed to get himself up to sixth. The Mclaren driver did everything he could to keep the obviously quicker Red Bull at bay, and he did so as they traded places, and the young Briton getting sixth place back by demonstrating the extra power the KERS engines give the drivers.

Hamilton soon conceded the place to Webber as his car was struggling to keep the Red Bull behind, giving the Aussie sixth place.

However, Toyota's decision to put Glock on intermediates started off a trend that saw all the other teams put their drivers on the same tyre compound, including Button. This allowed Glock to close the gap dramatically, which set up a last minute dash to the end of the race between the two.

There were further retirements at this later stage of the race, with Sebastian Vettel and Sebastian Buemi both spinning off on lap 30.

One lap later, the red flag was waved and the race was brought to a stop, with the drivers parking their cars on the grid to await what Charlie Whiting was to decide.

After nearly an hour of waiting, it was decided that the race would not proceed, giving Button his second win of the season, and his third in his career.

Nick Heidfeld, who probably had the quietest race out of everyone, finished second, with Timo Glock coming in third.

Trulli, Barrichello, Webber, Hamilton, and Rosberg rounded out the rest of the points finishers, with Button getting the fastest lap of 1:36.641.

And there we have it, another brilliant race, and another victory for Brawn GP and Jenson Button. One question still remains however. With the "Brawn Supremacy," Button has had no challenge from anyone, securing pole position in both races and winning from there. But, can Button win from behind the front row of the grid? He did in 2006 round Hungary, let's see if he can do it again.

A1GP 2008/09: Neel Jani Equals "The Hulk's" Winning Record

Talvir Singh — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 13:26:08 -0400

I would first like to apologise for not writing any articles for a long time. My University work has swamped me down and I haven't had a chance. I know this happened nearly a month ago now but here is an A1GP article for Gauteng, South Africa.

The sunny, picturesque scene of the Gauteng circuit in Kyamlami, South Africa, saw Team Switzerland's Neel Jani take the championship lead away from Adam Carroll and Team Ireland, and equal Nico Hulkenburg's record number of wins for a driver in an A1GP career. Team France still hold the record of most wins with 15.

The Swiss driver carried on his fun of form from the last round at Taupo, New Zealand, by recording another Feature win and securing a third place in the Sprint race.

However, the Sprint race saw a different team take the winning honours, as it was Team Netherlands, who haven't won a race since Beijing in the second season, who took victory.

Jeroen Bleekomolen piloted his A1GP powered by Ferrari car superbly, and was completely untouchable, as he was just over 4.5secs clear of Team Portugal in second, demonstrating his dominance.

There was plenty of drama to accompany this race as Team China tried to get passed the New Zealand car of Earl Bamber, who fought to hold onto the last point scoring position.

China's Ho-Pin Tung threw everything he had at Bamber, and even got passed him twice, on laps four and five, but overshot it both times and ran wide, and from then couldn't get passed.

There was also some pit drama for Switzerland, as they could have finished second, but Team Malaysia got in their way in the pits, and he got leapfrogged by Team Portugal, after just managing to creep by the Malaysian car.

Team Great Britain's Danny Watts had more bad luck this time around by swiping the Brazilian car on the start/finish straight, and beaching his car on the gravel. He also picked up suspension and front wing damage.

When the chequerd flag was waved after lap 14 and Team Netherland's Jeroen Bleekomolen picked up the victory, with Portugal and Switzerland rounding out the podium.

Team Ireland, who qualified sixth, fought his way all through the race, to pick off Monaco's Clivio Piccione on the final lap to get fourth place, with India, South Africa and New Zealand rounding out the points finishers.

This was only a glimpse of the excitement from the weekend of racing, with the Feature race providing excellent racing and some controversy.

This was the moment when Neel Jani would show his experience as an A1GP driver, and take the championship lead from Team Ireland.

When it comes down to it, raw pace isn't the only factor that determines a race victory, its also about being cautious and waiting for the right moment, which is exactly what Jani did to secure himself his ninth A1GP career victory.

Team Monaco were very quick in qualifying, as Clivio Piccione put himself right at the front of the grid to give himself Monaco's first pole of the season.

As the race started, Piccione got off to a brilliant start, with Teams Malaysia, New Zealand, Australia, and Switzerland going four abreast into the first corner.

Team Switzerland were the winners in that tussle as the experienced Jani guided his A1GP powered by Ferrari car passed the others into second, with Australia's John Martin being forced onto the grass behind Malaysia and New Zealand.

There was also trouble for championship contenders Team Portugal, who stalled on the grid, ending up at the very back, fighting his way through the pack from then on.

However, Team Ireland, who already suffered some bad luck in the Sprint race with only a fourth place under their belt, were the first victims of the race, with Team Malaysia's Fairuz Fauzy bumping into the back of Adam Carroll, after he tried to shut the door on Fauzy, causing him to spin.

This put Carroll in the gravel and out of the race, giving championship contenders Switzerland and Portugal a chance to close the gap as much as possible.

There was more damage to be done by Team Malaysia as four laps later, after a tussle for third place, Earl Bamber was next into the gravel, putting Team New Zealand out of the race.

Teams Australia and Brazil picked up the pieces from that battle as they moved into fourth and fifth.

Teams France and Mexico also had a coming together on the same corner in the same lap, putting Mexico out of the race, and leaving France to try and recover themselves.

Fairuz Fauzy was to have more bad luck as he spun his car and ended up going into the pits for a long stop, placing him further down the pack.

Team Australia, who were looking to get themselves a podium finish after getting themselves up into third, and catching Neel Jani, had an incident in the pits, with Team Germany blocking their way out, causing the engine to stall.

John Martin and Team Australia's chances of a podium finish went up in flames along with the engine, giving Brazil a chance at scoring themselves their first podium finish since the first season.

However, Team Monaco were out in front and dominating, with Clivio Piccione clearly showing himself to be the dominant driver in the Feature race, after building up a 2.8secs lead over Team Switzerland.

This was all to change in the first round of pits stops as the Monaco pit crew put in a slow stop on Piccione's car, giving Switzerland the chance to leapfrog Monaco on their first stop, giving Neel Jani the lead.

Team Brazil were also looking exceptionally good as Felipe Guimares was quickly catching Piccione, and soon the 17-year-old took second place.

From then on, Team Switzerland dominated, as Neel Jani's experience once again showed through, as he drove quickly, but sensibly, giving himself an unchallenged lead over Team Brazil.

Towards the end of the race, the Team Brazil garage had worried looks on their faces as they were facing a fuel pressure problem on the car, causing Guimares to be cautious over the last two laps.

Out in front there were no problems for Neel Jani as he saw the chequered flag to give himself his ninth victory in his A1GP career, demonstrating his immense abilities as an A1GP driver, and giving Team Switzerland a three point advantage over Team Ireland.

Team Brazil managed to finish second despite the fuel pressure problems, and an ecstatic Emerson Fittipaldi waved his young driver home, with Clivio Piccione following closely behind to record Team Monaco's best result to date with a third place.

Team Netherlands, who had a quiet race, finished fourth, with Team Portugal quietly battling their way up to finish fifth.

My driver the day however was Team Lebanon's Daniel Morad, who was quickest in practice, had bad luck in qualifying, but drove fearlessly to give Lebanon their best result of sixth.

Teams Great Britain, USA, Indonesia, and Italy rounded out the rest of the points finishers, with Team Malaysia obtaining a bonus for a fastest lap of 1:28.306 secs.

With two rounds to go, there are only nine points separating the top three, with Team Netherlands only eight points behind them, potentially making it a four way battle to the end.

Taupo's Thrills and Spills Gives Neel Jani Feature Victory

Talvir Singh — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 09:49:26 -0500

After their Sprint race victory one month ago in Sepang, Malaysia, Team Switzerland, kept up their good form by winning the Feature race in Taupo, New Zealand, after the Swiss driver spent ten days in a hospital bed. Team Ireland won the Sprint race.

Neel Jani drove a sensible but commanding victory, proving that he can still challenge Adam Carroll, and Team Ireland, for the right to win two consecutive championships.

They showed great promise in the Sprint race, with conditions looking dusty on track, and sunny in the sky, and Team Ireland on pole position for the third consecutive race.

Adam Carroll dominated the Sprint race, driving superbly all the way from start to finish.

The race was filled with little incidents, with a small collision between Team Brazil and Team Great Britain, with both teams coming away unscathed, but losing a couple of positions each, and retirements from Teams Australia, Lebanon and China.

Team Ireland kept up their brilliant season so far with another great victory from Adam Carroll, proving that they are sure favourites to win the championship this season.

Switzerland finished second after starting fourth on the grid, with Netherlands rounding out the podium, dropping a place from their original starting position.

France, New Zealand, Portugal, dropping down from third, Italy, and Malaysia rounded out the remaining points finishers. Great Britain finished twelfth.

With the Feature race ahead, Team Ireland looked like they were to take a double win, along with their double pole and a fastest lap in the Sprint race.

Carroll started the race smoothly, but received some pressure from Felipe Albuquerque going into turn one, with the Portuguese driver right up behind him. However it was Team Switzerland who were the winners there, gaining two places and moving around the outside of turn one to get passed Netherlands and Portugal, moving to second.

Australia's John Martin gained a couple of positions himself in turn one, moving passed Netherlands into fourth, and Robert Doornbos had an even worst time by conceding fifth to Loic Duval of France.

The first lap was very eventful with teams making great progress, and even teams lower down the field pushing forward, with Team India moving from fourteenth, up to a points scoring tenth, and would later make his way up to seventh.

Chris van Der Drift made the home crowd cringe when he received a puncture on the first lap when he came in contact with Lebanon, forcing him to pit, placing him at the very back of the field, placing the home team out of points contention.

There was further drama as Teams Monaco and Brazil collided, forcing Clivio Piccione off the track, and into the pits to replace the front wing.

Later spins by Teams Great Britain, China and Malaysia were the last of the drama to unfold on the track for some time, with the pit drama about to take place.

The second round of stops were the most crucial for the teams, especially for Ireland and Switzerland, as they both came in on the same lap.

Neel Jani had kept the pressure on Ireland, but slowly fell back, with Portugal producing the fastest lap of the race, and closing on Switzerland.

Ireland's crew made a good stop, with Adam Carroll about ready to continue his domination of the Feature race.

However as he left the pits his car went into anti-stall, and his engine cut out, allowing Neel Jani to sneak passed him in the pits.

Jani's experience of the sport showed through at this crucial part of the race, with him beginning to dominate proceedings from then on.

But then Team Monaco spun off again, and Clivio Piccione beached the Monaco car, producing a Safety Car, which allowed Ireland to close up on Switzerland.

Adam Carroll has been known for great restarts, and Team Ireland were rejoicing, knowing their driver now had a chance.

Once again however, the calm, experienced Neel Jani produced the goods when they were needed, and left Ireland in his dust.

From then, Switzerland cruised home with no problems, but with two lap to go, the team radioed Jani and told him he was losing oil, and that he must refrain from using power boosts, no matter the situation.

Neel Jani was still too quick for Ireland anyway, and he crossed the line like the champion he is to win the Feature race in Taupo, Switzerland's first of the season, with Adam Carroll of Ireland finishing in a tentative second, and Portugal with a satisfied third.

This victory was particularly special for Neel Jani, as he was in hospital for ten days shortly before the race weekend, and for Switzerland, as this victory places them second in the championship, three point ahead of Portugal, and 13 points behind Ireland.

Australia, Netherlands, France, India, USA, Italy, and South Africa rounded out the top ten and the rest of the points finishers, with Team Portugal setting the fastest lap of the race with a 1m 14.898s, giving them an extra bonus point from the weekend.

Tears For Felipe Massa As Lewis Hamilton Wins Title

Talvir Singh — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 03:43:35 -0500

After a wet race at Sao Paulo, Brazil, Felipe Massa took what can only be described as a commanding victory at his home track. Lewis Hamilton on the other hand, walked away with the title of world champion 2008.

The Brazilian Grand Prix hosted the most dramatic climax to a season in the history of Formula One, with Lewis Hamilton losing and regaining his title hopes in the space of two laps. He drove a calm race taking little risks, and he gained the ultimate prize.

Lewis Hamilton, 23, went into the Brazilian Grand Prix needing only fifth place to win the championship, and qualifying fourth on the grid, with his team mate Heikki Kovalainen right behind in fifth to protect him from Fernando Alonso in sixth, was a more than satisfactory start to his weekend.

What he really hoped for now was a boring race where he would stay in fourth with his team mate behind to back him up in fifth, until the rain began to fall a few minutes before the beginning of the race. This delayed the start of the race and allowed the teams to equip their drivers with intermediates, except Robert Kubica who decided against this. He soon regretted it when he darted into the pits after the formation lap to change his tyres.

As the race got under way, the top five stayed in position, with Massa getting off the line with ease to slip away from Jarno Trulli and Kimi Raikkonen. Hamilton looked like he had slipped down a position, but Kovalainen was with him on the outside of turn one, and nursed his team mate through, and then shutting the door on Vettel.

Down the back straight however, Kovalainen lost two positions to Vettel and Alonso, but it can be said that Kovalainen had done his job for Hamilton, as he was sitting in a very cautious fourth place.

From then on it was a case of survival for Lewis Hamilton, and things only got worst for him when he came into the pits a few laps later to change his tyres to dries. This demoted him to seventh, with Trulli and Fisichella, who made an early gamble on the dry tyres, in front of him.

A couple of laps later, Hamilton was able to pass Trulli, and a further six laps he was able to pass Fisichella and put himself back into a title winning position.

For the most part of the race, Hamilton was able to keep his car there, when all of a sudden Robert Kubica passed him to unlap himself, therefore allowing Vettel to get pass and steal fifth, placing Hamilton outside of championship contention, with only three laps to go.

The last lap was upon Hamilton quickly, and Felipe Massa had crossed the line to win the Grand Prix before Hamilton was even half way round the track. The championship had slipped from him, until Timo Glock had lost 18 seconds on the last lap, allowing Hamilton to take back fifth place in the penultimate corner.

100,000 Brazilian fans dream of Massa winning the championship were dashed as Hamilton crossed the line to win his first title, and become the youngest driver ever to win one.

This race did not just give birth to a new champion, but also to a renewed Lewis Hamilton, who proved that he can drive under pressure, and deliver the goods when they are needed.

The Brazilian Grand Prix was also a race with another story however. It did not just give rise to a new world champion, but bid farewell to a great driver with a distinguished career in the sport—David Coulthard.

Although his last race only lasted one corner, it can be said that he was truly one of the greats, a modern day Sir Sterling Moss, a champion who will never be.

So the 2008 Formula One season has drawn to a close, and a new champion has been crowned. As a personal tribute, I would like to say well done to Lewis Hamilton, you thoroughly deserve the title.

Lewis Hamilton's Dominant Win at Shanghai Silences Critics

Talvir Singh — Tue, 21 Oct 2008 02:42:20 -0400

Lewis Hamilton silenced the critics with a commanding victory at Sunday's Grand Prix in Shanghai, China, demonstrating he still has a chance of winning the championship this season.

Hamilton, 23, drove a dominating performance from the moment the lights went out, to when the chequered flag was waved. He was completely untouchable, and that is far from over exaggerating. It was a master class of racing.

Unfortunately, the race itself cannot be described in the same manner.

It was a dry, dull race with minimal action or drama. There weren't even any pit lane mishaps, which seems to be mandatory following Felipe Massa's major disaster in the pits in Singapore.

The race started with some drama when Jarno Trulli was the sole victim of a first corner incident following a fight with Sebastian Bourdais.

Heikki Kovalainen and Fernando Alonso had a great tussle that lasted a fraction less than a lap, which involved Kovalainen going round the outside of Alonso and nearly taking Massa, all in the first two corners. Both drivers continued to battle through the lap. With several chances for Alonso to take back fourth place, Kovalainen remained stubborn.

This great war between the Renault and Mclaren ended on the back straight when the Spaniard got the better of the Finn coming out of turn 13 and flew past him with ease.

And if that wasn't enough for Kovalainen, his MP4-23 failed him for the second race in a row with a puncture to his right front tire. He hobbled back to the pits, got it replaced, and rejoined at the back of the field, only to retire a couple of laps later with brake problems. Another bad day at the office for the Finn.

This was perhaps the most eventful part of the race so far, and happened to remain so, until Kimi Raikkonen conceded second place to his Ferrari teammate Massa.

Raikkonen was the only driver in the whole race who could challenge Hamilton's pace, but even then he was six seconds behind. Massa, on the other hand, had no pace, and accepted in the post-race press conference that his Ferrari could not match Hamilton's Mclaren.

It looked then that Hamilton would leave China nine points ahead of Felipe. That was until Raikkonen took his foot right off the pace and conceded second place to his teammate with eight laps remaining.

Raikkonen explained during the press conference that he was happy to do that, and that he is willing to anything to help his team and Massa. If anything, this generous act is his way of repaying Massa for conceding the win at Brazil in 2007 to Raikkonen, allowing him to win the championship by one point over Hamilton.

Now the gap is seven points, exactly the same as the lead Hamilton had going into Brazil last year. Ron Dennis has informed Hamilton that he is to race sensibly and not try anything too daring.

It can be said that Massa dominates at Brazil, so a win is unlikely for Hamilton. But as the championship stands now, if Massa wins in Brazil, then Hamilton only needs to get fifth place.

For Massa to win he will need to win in Brazil and for Hamilton to finish sixth or lower. Game on.

Also I would like to thank my brother for helping me think up my titles.

Hamilton and Massa's Blunder Give Champ Another Win

Talvir Singh — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 02:00:33 -0400

The Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji Speedway produced a spectacle beyond words. It had drama, overtaking, crashes, spins, five different leaders, and more importantly, saw a former world champion go back to his former glory with a second consecutive win.

Fernando Alonso, 27, raced home to a second consecutive victory at the bottom of Mount Fuji at the 2008 Japanese Grand Prix. He, without a doubt in my mind, raced so supremely that no other driver could touch him.

On lap one of the Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton lost the lead briefly to Kimi Raikkonen, cut across his team mate Hekki Kovalainen, and then tried to take back the lead into the first corner, ending in complete mayhem between the Ferrari's and Mclaren's.

This one move nearly cost Hamilton the championship, but to add salt to the already open wound, he challenged Massa into the tight turn ten, and ended up being spun round by the Ferrari driver, placing him right at the very back of the pack.

Luckily for him Massa, 27, was given a drive through penalty for the incident, which placed him outside of the points. But if Hamilton, 23, being at the back of the grid wasn't enough, then you will love what happens next. He was awarded a drive through penalty for his incident with Raikkonen at turn one on lap one.

Hamilton's chances of a points finish were over at this point and there was nothing he could do about it, and if Ron Dennis thought that this was the worst part of his afternoon, then I wonder what he thought when Hekki Kovalainen had a hydraulics failure. I'm sure he was thinking what any die hard Mclaren fan was thinking, which I'm certain cannot be mentioned.

So that was it for Mclaren, both cars were not going to score any points, and especially with Kovalainen in such a good position to perhaps get a second win under his belt, which gives Ferrari a lead of seven points.

But as the television coverage clearly presented throughout the whole race, this particular race was no longer about Ferrari and Mclaren, it was about Fernando Alonso and his superb victory.

I mean seriously, who cares about whats happening with Ferrari and Mclaren when there is a BMW and a Renault leading the pack. After Hamilton's ordeal at the start, Robert Kubica was promoted to a spot which I believe is where he belongs, first position, with Fernando Alonso following closely in second.

Along with all the excitement of seeing these two drivers out in front, there was more drama at turn one, lap one, with David Coulthard being involved in an almighty crash with Kazuki Nakajima, sending into the tyre wall and out of the race.

Glock also had an early retirement, with Sutil following three laps later, but it was all about Alonso in this race.

Even though there was a BMW, a car which is clearly faster and more supreme than the Renault, he still kept a minor gap of 1.5 secs behind Kubica, so when they pitted, Alonso leap frogged him and came out leading the pack.

This Grand Prix showed the shear magnitude and skill of Alonso's driving abilities. Not just that, but his team mate Nelson Piquet, Jr. showed why he deserves to stay at Renault, finishing in fourth position behind Kimi Raikkonen.

Both of the Toro Rosso's kept up their impecible form finishing sixth and seventh, but Sebastian Bourdais (sixth) was given a penalty for dangerous driving out of the pits and causing Massa to spin.

Besides this tainted ending to the race, it was a race to remember with a former champion being put back on the podium yet again, and with plenty of action, drama and penalties thrown into the mix. The Japanese Grand Prix at the foot of Mount Fuji provided a brilliant race, and the question that remains is will China and Brazil provide the same.

A1GP 2008/09: Treacherous Weather Leads to Surprise Results at Zandvoort

Talvir Singh — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 05:28:14 -0400

Heavy rain saw Team France victorious in the first Feature race of the A1GP 2008/09 season in Zandvoort, The Netherlands. Team Malaysia brought home a win in the Sprint race.

Treacherous rain, mixed with the choppy North Sea sending up large quantities of spray, gave a spectacle that could only be seen to be believed. Good thing I'm here to say what happened.

The first race of the 2008/09 season at Zandvoort was set up perfectly, with new cars, new drivers, and the home nation on pole position for the Sprint race, New Zealand alongside, and Ireland rounding out the top three. Team Malaysia started in fourth.

Team Monaco put in a fabulous performance in qualifying, starting fifth on the grid, along side Neel Jani for Switzerland in sixth.

Only 17 cars were ready for this race, as eight of the teams (including GBR, Germany, India, and Canada) were not ready in time.

So as the scene was set on a wet and windy Zandvoort, the sprint race got underway. Due to the conditions, the race started under a safety car.

As soon as the safety car went in after six laps, Jereon Bleekemolen led out of the final corner, with New Zealand's Earl Bamber in second.

It was then that the drama unfolded with Adam Carroll for Team Ireland applying the power too early round the final corner and spinning, facing head on into the rest of the field.

Team Monaco were the unlucky culprits of this incident, as their driver had nowhere to go and crashed into Ireland, therefore forcing him to retire.

Since that moment, there was an incident on nearly every lap, with Lebanon, Australia, and Korea all going off within two laps of each other.

Two laps later, New Zealand and Netherlands participated in a thrilling battle at turn 13, with Earl Bamber victorious, and claiming the lead from Jereon Bleekemolen.

This small piece of overtaking showed Bamber's potential as an A1GP driver, as the 18-year-old raced like a veteran.

He forced the experienced Bleekemolen into a mistake, taking advantage of it by getting alongside him halfway through the corner, forcing him to the outside of the exit, and causing Bleekemolen to concede the place.

But it was Malaysia who were to shine in this race, as they overtook first Netherlands and then New Zealand to claim victory in the Sprint race. New Zealand was second and France third.

This was a shock result for France, as Loic Duval started the race in 11th and posted the fastest lap of the race, therefore obtaining a bonus point.

Netherlands finished fourth, with Switzerland, South Africa, Italy and USA rounding out the points finishers.

Team China were unfortunately the unluckiest of all the nations in this race as they had battled their way from 16th to fifth, but then spun on the last corner with only four laps to go.

So with an exciting Sprint race over, what did the Feature race have in store for the crowd at Zandvoort?

With Malaysia looking so quick throughout the Sprint race, they seemed the favourites to win, but France were not to be counted out, as they had shown brilliant potential in the sprint race.

And of course, it was France who were to be victorious as Loic Duval drove an absolutely stunning race and put France back on the top spot.

Of course, he did receive a hint of luck from the pit stops, with Team Malaysia having a problem with the right rear tyre, therefore allowing Duval to build a large enough lead to pit and rejoin the race safely in the lead.

It was a similar story in the second round of pit stops, but without any problems for any of the teams.

Amongst all the drama in the pits, there was plenty of drama on the track, with both Switzerland and South Africa retiring, and Ireland's Adam Carroll spinning again.

Another ingredient was to be added to this recipe of a perfectly entertaining race, with Team Lebanon and Team China crashing entering Tarzan.

It was caused by Lebanon's David Morad trying to go wide into the corner and touching the paint on the outside of the track, therefore resulting in an almighty collision with China's Hoo-Pin Tung.

This mistake cost Lebanon their highest points finish (fourth place) in their entire A1GP career.

After that incident the safety car was deployed, and the race was finished early under a safety car with Team France taking the chequered flag, Team Malaysia second and New Zealand's Earl Bamber claiming the last podium spot.

Team Monaco recorded a sixth place after their unfortunate accident in the Sprint race, launching their A1GP campaign with a good result, and Team Korea taking the last spot with only seven cars finishing.

Along with all the drama of the race, the drivers also had a different trial to overcome, and that was their new cars.

The old specs were:

Engine: Zytec
Size: V8
Bhp: 550
Power boost: 30bhp
Torque: 330
Tyres: Cooper
Brakes: Steel Alloy

Compared to the new specs of:

Engine: Ferrari
Size: V8
Bhp: 600
Power boost: 60bhp
Torque: 408
Tyres: Michelin
Brakes: Carbon Fibre

These new and improved specs of the cars added an extra trial for the drivers to overcome, not to mention the wideness of the new chassis, giving a hint of Champ Car to the racing.

With the first race of the season over, Zandvoort truly served up the recipe for a perfect race. Drama, crashes, new drivers, unassailable amounts of overtaking, and an old champion back on the winning spot.

Next on the menu is Chengdu, China on Nov. 9, and may it provide an equally delicious line of events.

A1GP in 2008: What's New and What Could Happen

Talvir Singh — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 01:50:34 -0400

A1GP powered onto the motor sport calendar on 25th September 2005, with the opening race at Brands Hatch in Great Britain. It provided two races full of thrills and spills and a then younger Nelson Piquet Jr. (now racing for Renault Formula One team), taking victory in both the feature and sprint race for Team Brazil.

Since then there have been three seasons, with three different teams winning the championship. The fourth season is nearing, with only three days until the first race at Zandvoort, Netherlands.

Last season saw Team GB's rookie driver Oliver Jarvis win the feature race, with South Africa's Adrian Zaugg winning the sprint race. Who will win the first race of this season?

Team GB stand a very strong chance of winning one of the two races, as their past performances at Zandvoort have shown much promise, but they will have competition from South Africa.

Team Netherlands, themselves, will be pushing hard to seize a home victory in front of their addoring fans.

Team Switzerland will be looking to defend their championship successfully. A win here for them will certainly start their campaign off right for them.

Other teams, such as New Zealand, France, India, Ireland, and Canada, will be looking to stamp their authority in the opening stages of the championship, and victory for any of them would seal the deal.

Team Korea and Team Monaco are the two new additions to the A1GP family, and perhaps one of them will surprise everyone with a maiden victory this weekend.

Besides the two new teams, there is also a major change for all the teams and the sport itself. A1GP's partnership with Ferrari, bringing in a change to the chassis and engines of all the cars, not to mention the new name for the sport will be the A1GP World Cup of Motor Sport powered by Ferrari.

Trying saying that two time... and fast.

Besides the long name, having Ferrari as a partner will hopefully boost the ever growing popularity of the sport and the new cars should be able to add as much excitement to the sport as the Lola chassis and Cooper engines did.

So the new season is set, with new Formula One Ferrari F2004 chassis and 4.5 litre V8 Ferrari engines at the drivers disposal. Team Switzerland looks to defend their title with Great Britain, New Zealand, and France breathing down their necks.

The 2008/09 season should start off with a bang and go right down to the wire like in previous seasons.

Fernando Alonso Victorious, Lewis Hamilton Satisfied, Felipe Massa Disappointed

Talvir Singh — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 01:18:42 -0400

Lewis Hamilton came out of the first Singapore Grand Prix with his head held high as he was able to extend his championship over Felippe Massa to seven points. The main highlight of this weekends race, though, was Fernando Alonso winning his first race since returning to the Renault Formula One team.

The first ever Formula One night race at the Marina Bay, Singapore circuit could not have been better. It was a race full of thrills, drama, and triumph.

Alonso, 27, won his first race in over a year, his last being the Italian Grand Prix last season with Mclaren. Alonso was quick all weekend, setting the fastest time in Friday practice and carrying on that pace into Saturday Qualifying.

He was on course to start on one of the front two rows of the grid. Unfortunately, a fuel feed problem caused his car to roll gently to a stop in Q2.

Luckily enough for him, his team issued a brilliant pit stop strategy after Nelson Piquet crashed the sister Renault, causing the Safety Car to take to the track. So, looking at another perspective, Piquet's demise led to Alonso's triumph. Talk about give and take.

Let us not forget about the larger scale though: the championship. Lewis Hamilton, 23, was content with a third place finish behind Nico Rosberg, extending his lead over Felippe Massa to seven points. That has given him some temporary breathing space in the hunt for the championship.

Massa, 27, who was in the best position going into the race as he started from pole, made a critical error in the pit lane, driving away with the fuel hose. Although, evidence does show that it was not his fault.

Because of his pit lane incident, he had to park his car at the end of the pit lane and wait for his already out-of-breath mechanics to run 500m down the pit lane to rescue him from humiliation.

This put him at the pack and, as if this wan't enough, he incurred a drive through penalty for an unsafe release from the pit lane, therefore cutting his ever slowly fading chances of getting any world championship points even more.

The penalty added insult to injury, but there was more woe for the 27 year old Brazilian.

He suffered a puncture later on in the race, adding salt to the wound. This left him to finish out of the points in thirteenth. If he is to score some much needed world championship points and close the advantage that Hamilton has over him, then he needs to pray to god that the heavens do not open over Fuji Speedway in Japan in two weeks.

Besides all of the action that was happening to the drivers at the top of the championship, the new night race gave a brilliant race throughout the whole grid.

There was plenty of overtaking, especially at turn seven, which the drivers have now favoured as an overtaking spot. Amongst all the action, there were battles between Hamilton and Coulthard, Rosberg and Trulli, and Kovalainen and Glock (but very briefly), which all added an extra dimension to the race; it was not simply Ferrari and Mclaren battling with each other.

Overall Singapore developed a brilliant track, brilliant facilities, and a brilliant race. Besides the racing, there is still one unanswered question that needs to be answered: could this race could be the new Monaco,as a jewel on the crown of Formula One? This writer thinks that it definitely has the potential.